


The path of shadows. First step

by Taera



Series: The path of shadows [1]
Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Available in Russian, Blood Drinking, Character Turned Into Vampire, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-06
Updated: 2015-06-06
Packaged: 2018-04-03 04:49:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4087567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Taera/pseuds/Taera
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Assyfs were delaying Cormac’s Initiation. Colonel Monro decided to use the existing situation to the advantage of his Great House.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The path of shadows. First step

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Путь теней. Первый шаг](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4283613) by [Tatrien (Taera)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Taera/pseuds/Tatrien). 



> Many thanks to Maeuschen Ins, who spent her time fishing out some pretty stupid mistakes of mine. All errors left are my own, feel free to tell me about them.  
>    
> This fic was written for the Russian contest "Winter Fandom Combat 2015". I decided to translate it after I read [this](http://archiveofourown.org/works/3906424) fanfic. Stuff happened and now you see this.  
> Well, enjoy the ride :>

Even now Shay’s body shuddered lusciously from the mere thought of last night’s events. Contentment came and went in warm waves, and Cormac felt a little drunk. And light weighted. And strong.

The terror which had struck him in the very beginning now seemed ridiculous and absurd. It all went not as bad as Shay had imagined. At least it was not _that_ bad and didn’t justify Liam’s reaction who winced every time Cormac asked yet another question about his turning into a vampire. Given that Shay was curious and stubborn, and Liam was kind to him, those questions came with enviable regularity, although Cormac never really got an answer. Only Liam’s face turned into a wax mask which was able to hide anything.

And now Shay became a vampire too, and the memories of his own conversion only made him smile and feel a pulsing small sun somewhere deep inside him. With every soft flash came the sensations of warmth, contentment and safety, gradually dissolving unpleasant memories, making them blurry and unsaturated. Sighing contentedly Shay opened his eyes and looked around. He was lying in a bedroom, not very big, and in the flickering candlelight he could make out heavy curtains drawn over the windows and not letting in the light from the outside. Cormac was glad about it; he winced from even one fleeting thought about bright sunny day.

Soft rustling of a turned page reached Shay from the other side of the room, and he brusquely turned his head towards the source of the sound. There he saw a gray-haired man, who was sitting in an armchair, wearing a simple shirt and breeches. In the light pouring from the candle on a cupboard nearby, the man looked more than harmless, but Shay with all his being was aware of an aura of power surrounding him.

As if feeling his gaze, the man stopped reading, closed the book and looked at Shay, soft and reassuring small smile curving his lips. When their eyes met Cormac gasped from piercing delight, which was entwined with an equally strong desire to _serve_ this… creature. This vampire. His _Master_.

“You are awake, I see,” deceptively gentle voice. Hearing it Shay understood one thing.

He’d do whatever his Master said. Neither human relationships, nor human friendship, nor human morale would interfere with that. And even the memories of his human life wouldn’t be able to stop him.

“Master…” Shay hoarsely forced out, carefully sitting up. He didn’t know what exactly he wanted to say, but somehow it seemed important — to voice and to form into words that thing which was currently seething inside him.

“In human society I’m known by the name of George Monro,” Master said, and there was something in his eyes and in his still gentle smile, as if he understood what Cormac was trying to vocalize and silently replied ‘I know’. “I beg your forgiveness for such a rude Initiation, I couldn’t find another way.”

Picture-like memories rushed in front of Shay’s inner sight.

On the first one he was tracking down a member of House Corax late at night, now and then trembling from the cold and pulling his hood lower, shielding from the wind. Liam had told him to find out where this vampire slept, and had very strictly forbidden from initiating any skirmish, that’s why Cormac was trying his best to hide. Though sometimes he suspected he merely was played with and was lead through the streets with one single goal — to confuse.

The second picture shows him going into the lane between houses, smelling the odor, wincing and stopping for several seconds to try and make himself insensitive to the smells around him. A second after that he lost his target and cursed, then immediately darted ahead and rushed out from the other end of the narrow street, completely forgetting that he must avoid detection. A moment later, moving on inertia, he ran into a man, and only when he saw glowing pale-blue eyes he realized how horrible the situation he had got himself into was.

Next memory. The man’s arms wound like an iron vice around Shay who was desperately trying to get free, deaf and blind because of the sheer terror; he wanted to scream, but a lump in the throat prevented him not only from screaming, even from breathing properly. Then suddenly there was a sharp pain in the neck, and the cold started to seep into Shay’s body, paralyzing it. He was getting weaker with every passing moment, and not long after that his legs refused to keep him up any longer. Very soon Cormac went limp in the vampire’s arms, feeling life flowing out of him.

Several moments later all the terror and the fear had been washed away by the powerful surge of pure bliss which condensed into a ball somewhere in Shay’s chest and ripped him from the cold and dark embrace of death. And salty blood on the lips tasted like an ambrosia.

Shay shook his head, coming back from the memories, and sucked in a sharp breath. His body remembered everything all too well, down to the smallest of details.

“Rude?” Cormac hoarsely asked. He sincerely didn’t understood what exactly had been rude in that delightful bliss. Unexpected, yes, but in no way rude. “You don’t have to apologize, Master Monro.”

“Quite the opposite, Mr. Cormac. I deprived you of your choice in a most horrible way. But I couldn’t watch any longer how Assyfs used you, yet refused to let your full potential out.”

When Shay heard about his ex-brothers he felt nothing, as if he hadn’t spent last seven years with them, living under the same roof, training among them. The memories became dull and flat, lost almost all of their colors. It was as if Cormac remembered not his own life but a story about someone else who was in no way related to him. And, perhaps, Shay should’ve worried about that. But he hadn’t. Now his future belonged to his Master.

“Then I forgive you. Let’s not think about it anymore,” Shay couldn’t help a smile pulling at his lips. “Considering how Liam closed off every time I tried to learn anything about his Initiation, I’m glad you intervened.”

“Well, in that case, I suppose I should acquaint you with the real situation we have at our hands. Considering how Assyfs treated you I have no doubt they have concealed many facts from you.”

And Master Monro told Shay many different things about Coraxes and Assyfs — the Great vampire Houses, originating from _the_ Cain — and everything he told fit into the overall picture of the world with natural easiness, although Assyfs didn’t mention those facts in Cormac’s presence even once. Master Monro told about the Auditores and the Borgias, who had shaken the whole Italy when they thrived there. He told about the Monro bloodline, which five generations ago had arisen from the Corax House, and about the Kenway bloodline, originating from the Auditore House of the Great House of Assyf. The only living Kenway now ruled over the Colonial Rite of the Great House of Corax. Master Monro also told Shay about the Cain’s Legacy and about the artifacts. About true vampires and turned ones.

Cormac did not doubt his Master’s words. Partly because Assyfs told him some bits and pieces of that information nonetheless, partly because he felt with his whole being that all what had been said was the bare truth.

And Shay listened carefully, realizing with awe that with the new information came completely different understanding of what was going on. Achilles in his lectures always emphasized that Assyfs and Coraxes had been fighting over the better future of humankind from the oldest times, and that the turning was a necessary initiation step because only vampires could truly protect people. Achilles not even once mentioned Cain, he did not explain intertwining between vampire Clans and Houses. He did not tell about the chase for power; such a logical thing, which Cormac had never ever thought of when he was training amongst Assyfs. And he really _did_ trust Achilles, he really believed that after joining the Great House he would be protecting mankind.

Master Monro had been talking so long Shay didn’t notice the exact moment when overflowing feeling of lightness had been replaced by the slowly growing thirst and when the heady aroma of blood had started to pleasantly tease his sense of smell. Only when the room had suddenly sunk into silence Cormac realized that for the last several minutes he had been paying no attention to the words, instead listening to Master’s voice and intonations, completely captivated. Shay started and swallowed, with some trepidation lifted his eyes from his hands crumpling the sheets and looked at his Master.

The man wasn’t angry. He understandingly smiled and slightly inclined his head to the side, watching Shay. Then he put the book on a cupboard beside him and rose to his feet in one smooth motion of an experienced predator, and this motion didn’t match with his soft, yet intent, gaze at all. The candle remained where it was, lighting Master up from behind, and Shay couldn’t help the gasp torn out from his throat, for the vampire’s eyes were glowing with pale-blue. Shay felt his own fangs pulling out, unusual and achingly sweet sensation.

“Master…”

“Be quiet, Mr. Cormac,” Master Monro sat down beside him, then pulled down the collar of his shirt and inclined his head to the side and backwards, baring his neck. “Drink. Drink, and step onto the path of shadows.”

Shay couldn’t help a relieved moan and hurried to obey. At the last moment he regained some portion of his senses and instead of hungrily burying fangs into the offered throat he carefully and slowly sank them into the Master’s flesh. Invigorating spicy blood flowed into Shay’s mouth and he pressed closer to the vampire, twined his arms around his shoulders, as though he was afraid the man would move away. With every mouthful Shay’s body shuddered with pleasure, each wave brought strength and blinding ecstasy, so that even when squeezing his eyes shut Cormac still saw variegated kaleidoscope dancing before him. In comparison to what was going on now, even the most bright orgasms Shay ever experienced in his brief yet very rich human life paled.

Somewhere deeply inside him something clicked, taking its place. All the fears were gone, the whole previous life faded and lost all of its colors once and for all. Only one thought, as bright as the sun, remained in Shay’s head.

Now his body and his soul belonged to Master Monro.

And upon realizing that Cormac was not terrified but delighted.


End file.
